HMS - Benedictine University - Lisle Campus Lisle USA 2026

The history of Benedictine University begins with the Benedictine monks of St. Procopius Abbey in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago in 1887. The Benedictine Order bears the name of St. Benedict, born in 480, who is acknowledged as the father of western monasticism. In 528, he established the famed monastery of Monte Cassino.

The history of Benedictine University reflects its evolution from a culturally focused institution to a diverse, coeducational university. The first building on the Lisle campus was dedicated in September 1901. That building was expanded into the 1920s, with new buildings added in 1950. The University was originally founded to educate men of Czech and Slovak descent, and in the early years most of the students were from those ethnic groups. The University became coeducational in 1968.

Buildings & Facilities

Recognizing the social, economic and building changes taking place around the University community (which in its earliest days had a significant agricultural character), the University added necessary buildings and facilities to accommodate the needs of contemporary students including residence halls, independent living apartments, a fitness center and state-of-the-art athletic fields.

The University added the Kindlon Hall of Learning and the Birck Hall of Science in 2001 and the Neff Alumni Center in 2012, and in 2015, Benedictine unveiled the four-story, 125,000-square-foot Daniel L. Goodwin Hall of Business, which features an innovative Bloomberg Trading Lab and a 600-seat auditorium. These developments represent a continued investment in modern facilities while honoring the history of Benedictine University, which is reflected in the design and purpose of its growing campus. A renovated quad area, which includes landscaped walkways, gothic-style lighting and rain gardens, connects the front entrance of Goodwin Hall with other key academic, enrollment and student life buildings.

The University gained national and international recognition through major partnerships. In 2003, Benedictine University and Springfield College in Illinois partnered to bring Benedictine programs and services to the state capital.

In 2004, Benedictine collaborated with Shenyang University of Technology and Shenyang Jianzhu University in China to bring Master of Business Administration and Master of Science in Management Information Systems programs overseas where there is a great demand for American business programs. Also in 2004, the University partnered with the Village of Lisle to construct the Village of Lisle-Benedictine University Sports Complex, a multi-purpose facility featuring lighted athletic fields with a nine-lane track.

Benedictine’s Margaret and Harold Moser Center opened in Naperville in 2006 to serve adult and graduate students, and later became the National Moser Center for Adult Learning. Meanwhile, Benedictine became the first Catholic University in Arizona when it established a branch campus in Mesa and opened its doors to students in the fall of 2013.

In 2016, Benedictine rebranded the Moser Center into the School of Graduate, Adult and Professional Education with degree programs offered in business, education and health care. Classes met on campus (Lisle, Springfield or Mesa), off campus at work-based sites (central and northern Illinois, and southwestern Arizona) and online in 43 states.

Today, undergraduate enrollment has grown to more than 3,300 and total enrollment is nearly 10,000. The University offers 56 undergraduate and 19 graduate programs. Most Benedictine students are from the Chicago area and Illinois, although 50 states and more than 15 foreign countries are represented—a testament to how the history of Benedictine University has shaped it into a diverse and globally connected institution.

The Benedictine Order

The history of Benedictine University is deeply rooted in the legacy of the Benedictine Order, named after St. Benedict, born in 480 and widely regarded as the father of Western monasticism. In 528 he established the famed monastery of Montecassino. In the middle ages, Benedictine monasteries expanded all over Europe, preserving ancient learning and written works by hand copying them in their scriptoria prior to the advent of printing with moveable type as invented by Johannes Gutenberg.

Benedictine University belongs to the Association of Benedictine Colleges and Universities, an organization that promotes the Benedictine traditions of education and hospitality.